How to Navigate the 11+

This month, Eleven Plus Exams was featured in the Families Hertfordshire Magazine, the go to magazine for families with children aged 0-12 living in Herts.

Our CEO and founder, Ilesh Kotecha, explains why the 11+ exam can be important for your child and what to look out for in a good tutor. We have shared the content of the article in this blog post. You can read the full issue of the July/August 2022 Families Magazine here.

When and why did you launch ElevenPlusExams?

Back in 2004, I was a single father, trying to help my own son pass his entrance exam for Queen Elizabeth’s School for Boys. I set up an online forum for us to discuss tricky questions together. It had unintended consequences; my son got into the school of his dreams through his hard work, but other parents had also started using the site after we were finished with it. I decided to keep it up until the interest waned, but thousands of parents had begun supporting each other through it. A decade later it was still attracting millions of visitors a year looking for advice and guidance as they navigate the 11+. The rest of ElevenPlusExams’s services, such as our face-to-face tutoring, practice books, online courses and revision platforms, grew from the desire to help the parents on this forum.

Why is the 11+ exam important?

The 11+ is a means of getting a place at a selective secondary school. Indirectly, the exam will likely define the calibre of the university your child will attend and ultimately influence their career choices and prospects. 

How soon before the exam should I start preparing my child?

The exams are challenging in many ways, usually on par with GCSEs. There are five main subjects that are tested: English, maths, verbal reasoning, non-verbal reasoning and creative writing. Year 3 and 4 are the ideal times to build core skills, whereas year 5 is the ideal time to begin refining exam techniques. 

How do I know if my child needs a tutor and what should I look for in a tutor?

There are plenty of pupils who will pass their 11+ every year without ever having received formal tuition or having seen practice papers. Every child will be different and what will suit one well and help them feel confident approaching their exam will not suit another. Tutors are valuable when it comes to tricky subjects and insider knowledge of exam techniques and up to date information on the form and style of exam questions.

When evaluating tuition, consider these kinds of questions: is your child happy working with the tutor? Do they feel able to ask questions when they do not understand something? Is the tutor giving you regular feedback on your child’s progress? Regular feedback is crucial throughout the 11+ process. It enables you to obtain a realistic view of your child’s chances of success, and to plan your schooling options accordingly.

How can I prepare my child for the 11+ exam at home?

Lots of children will use preparation books to practise working through questions on paper. Others, especially those sitting ISEB (Independent School Examining Board) exams that are sat online, may prefer a digital preparation platform like our Virtual Learning Environment. For a more structured and guided approach, an online 11+ tuition course is the ideal way to study from home.

What are the benefits of an online course?

Pre-recorded lessons are accessible and convenient; they make lessons available on demand and can fit around a child’s schedule to make tuition less stressful and taxing. If students find they need to spend more time on a certain topic they have the option to do so with online courses: they can pause, rewind and replay an explanation several times while working and ensure they feel confident before moving on. Essentially, online lessons allow students to work at their own pace which can be a great plus when building core skills and confidence for the 11+.

How do I know which practice books to buy?

Narrow down the school that you are aiming for. This allows you to identify what exam board will be administering your child’s exam and what subjects they will need to prepare for. Then you can begin to narrow down the practice books that will be the most appropriate. Try to avoid attempting practice exams very early on in the 11+ preparation process, as there will be a lot of material that a child new to the 11+ won’t be able to complete, and you may be wasting potentially useful resources. Creating some kind of syllabus plan for the topics to cover is a good idea. This can also help you to identify your child’s weaker areas and target these with more specialised practice material. ElevenPlusExams’s First Past the Post book series, for example, includes titles that target particular topics (like inference for English comprehension or worded problems for mathematics) that help children to efficiently target areas for improvement.

ElevenPlusExams offer in-person and online tuition, practice books for 11+ exam preparation, a comprehensive Virtual Learning Environment for revision, in-person and online mock exams sat by thousands of children across the UK and a lively online forum. 

For more information, visit: www.elevenplusexams.co.uk

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